Butler County Historical Society Museum

The Butler County Historical Society preserves and maintains this west Pennsylvania county’s largest collection of original artifacts, documents, photographs, and houses an extensive genealogical collection. Our office is located in the Senator Walter Lowrie House, directly behind the Butler County Courthouse.

The Planes of Fame Air Museum was founded in 1957 by Edward Maloney. It is the oldest independently operated aviation museum in the United States.

The museum collection spans the history of manned flight. We house over 150 Aircraft and displays. Many of the Aircraft are flyable, including the P-51 Mustang, F4U Corsair, P-47 Thunderbolt, P-40 Warhawk, B-25 Mitchell, P-38 Lightning, F-86 Sabre & Russian Mig 15.

Our Mission is to preserve aviation history, inspire interest in aviation, educate the public, and honor aviation pioneers and veterans.

We are a non profit 501 (c)(3) organization that has grown since 1957 through donations. We receive no monies from the government. For more info please visit: http://www.planesoffame.org

For almost 100 years and the advent of flight, man has sought to develop an aircraft that could be both offensive and defensive, and thus allow airborne supremacy. From the early 1900’s until after World War II, these aircraft were referred to as “Pursuit” types, and shared a “P” in their designations. Examples were the P-40 Tomahawk, the P-38 Lightning and the P-51 Mustang. After that war and the formation of the U.S. Air Force as a branch separate from the U.S. Army, the designations of these types were changed to “Fighters” having an “F” prefix. Examples are the F-84 and the F-86. Classic Fighters of America focuses almost entirely on Pursuit/Fighter aircraft employed by the U.S. forces in the past.

North American B-25J-25-NC, serial number 44-30733, nicknamed “Sandbar Mitchell” after it crashed on a Tanana River sandbar near Fairbanks, Alaska in June of 1969. With the help of skilled volunteers this B-25J will once again grace the skies over America in honor of the 340th Bomb Group. After spending 44 years resting on the Tanana River Sandbar, Sandbar Mitchell was recovered on July 5, 2013. She is now being restored in the Warbirds Of Glory Museum shop in Michigan.

In addition to the rare flying WWII and Korea warplanes on display at the impressive hangar of the Dixie Wing, there is a room dedicated to the display of artifacts and memorabilia of the Wars of the U.S. in the last century. On display at various points in the museum are mannequins wearing authentic uniforms of WWII. One cabinet displays WWI articles.

Several cabinets display finely crafted plastic models of Allied and Axis warplanes of the last century. This collection was crafted by the late James McConnell of Big Canoe, GA and donated to the Wing by his widow, Betty. A large collection of WWII toys is on display donated by Mr. Richard McNary. During the war, little or no metal was available for toys, so manufacturers used wood, cardboard and even plaster of paris to make these toys.

The centerpiece of the Museum is a 10 foot model of the “USS Enterprise” (CVA-6), the most decorated US warship of WWII and veteran of all but 2 major battles. It is displayed with scale models of U.S. carrier aircraft of WWII.

Various cabinets contain weapons and gear of American, British, French, Russian, German, Italian, and Japanese military services.

A large model of the “USS Missouri” battleship is displayed along with a freighter, the “Aldebarau”. Above these is a very large model of the CAF B-17 “Texas Raider”.

Aviation art by Col Mark Baldwin is displayed on the walls of the Museum along with newspapers of WWII and military insignias.

Sevearl aircraft engines are displayed including a Fairchild “Ranger”, an Allison V-12, a Rolls Royce “Merlin” V-12, a rare Guiberson diesel radial engine and the large Pratt and Whitney Double Wasp R-2800 used on the F4U Corsair fighter-bomber

The museum items supplement the stars of the Dixie Wing Hangar. These fully operational airplanes include the Douglas SBD-5 “Dauntless” divebomber, the North American P-51 D “Mustang” fighter, the Goodyear FG-1D Corsair fighter, the North American LT-6D “Mosquito” spotter attack aircraft, the Fiarchild PT-19A primary trainer, the Aeronca L-16 liason and spotter aircraft, a North American SNJ advanced trainer and two replica Japanese aircraft: the “Zero” fighter and the “Kate” torpedo bomber, these last two built for the movie “Tora, Tora, Tora!”

Museum curators are Col Mark Baldwin and Col Walt Cantrell. The Dixie Wing and the Commemorative Air Force is a 501-c3 tax exempt organization. The museum is staffed by volunteers and supported mainly by donations.

The Museum is home to the 35th Division Museum. It includes 36 pieces of military equipment outside–airplanes, helicopters, tanks, artillery, jeeps, trucks, artillery tractors, etc. The Museum includes over 125 inside exhibits, including exhibits on the Civil War, Indian Wars in Kansas, Spanish-American War, Mexican Border War of 1916, World War I, World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, Desert Storm-Desert Shield, and the Global Wars on Terrorism–Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom. The Museum includes the Kansas National Guard Hall of Fame, a MAS*H replica of the “Swamp,” an original oil portrait of Adolph Hitler, a Snowgoose UAV, and Maj Daniel Forbes.

The Combat Air Museum is a non-profit institution dedicated to the creation of facilities and resources for the education of the local and regional communities through the collection, preservation, conservation and exhibition of aircraft, information, artifacts, technology and art associated with the military aviation history of the United States of America.

Founded in the 1970’s, The Valiant Air Command Warbird Museum has a continually growing collection of over 45 historic warbirds from the beginnings of aviation to the present day. The VAC is a 501(3)c educational organization dedicated to the preservation of, education about and commemoration of Warbirds from all eras and the men and women who flew, maintained and fought in them.

Pappy Boyington Field Museum is dedicated to preserving local aviation histoy and the efforts of veterans and aviators who have sacrificed and contributed to preserving the integrity and peace to which the United States has been graced.

Pappy Boyington Field Museum preserves the military and aviation history of area residents. We are a federal and Idaho 501(c)3 charitable non-profit, and donations are tax deductible. We are looking for military scrapbooks and stories of local veterans. We also pay particular honor to locally born and raised WW2 Ace Greg “Pappy” Boyington.

The Alfred & Lois Kelch Aviation Museum, Inc. is located at the Brodhead Airport (C37), near Brodhead, Wisconsin. Housed in four hangars, the museum contains a unique collection of aircraft and automobiles from the 1920’s and 1930’s, many of which are one-of-a-kind or sole surviving examples. All of the aircraft are fully restored and most are flyable.

Liberty Aviation Museum is a newer museum that opened in July of 2012 at the Erie-Ottawa International Airport (KPCW Carl Keller Field) in Port Clinton, Ohio. Our museum consists our B-25 Mitchell, WWII bomber “Georgie’s Gal” built in 1945, recently restored by Aero Trader out of Chino, CA. (The B-25 Mitchell is currently away from the museum until late July 2015) Ground vehicles include a 1941 Dodge ambulance, 2 Jeeps, German 37mm AA gun, German Horch Truck, German Field Kitchen, German Kubel, 3 BMW Motorcycles, Tiger Tank Replica, Hetzer Tank Replica, Panther Tank Replica (currently undergoing restoration away from the museum), & 2 WWII PT boats under current restoration (Currently not available for public viewing until new hangar expansion opens after Memorial Day. View the PT 728 Thomcat facebook page for photos of the restoration of the boat! The PT-728 will be on display in the new hangar expansion when the building opens after Memorial Day. The sister boat, the PT-724 is in storage currently and not available for viewing) The PT-728 Thomcat will be available for boat experiences after restoration is completed! Don’t forget to check out the Tin Goose Diner attached to the museum! Open year round, open 7 days a week (7am-7pm), serving breakfast, lunch and dinner! You can fly in or drive in to visit us! When flying in, please radio the FBO to verify that our ramp is open for parking. If it isn’t, you can park at the airport and we have a shuttle that will bring you to our facility next door! Ford Tri-Motor rides are available.

Discover how Northern Alberta\’s rich aviation history was made in your community, making Edmonton:“The Gateway to the North”See the incredible progress of technology in the past century of flight. Take a guided tour with a group, or plan a self guided, interactive journey through the culture of flight, from the days of wood and fabric to the Jet Age of today. We offer specially tailored interactive tours and work experience programs for school and youth groups.

From the time man first took flight in the early 1900s to the recent shuttle missions into space, South Central Kentucky has played a significant role in the history of aviation. One of the first pilots to fly in combat claimed ties to Bowling Green, as did a World War I flying ace, a pioneer instructor pilot, a Vietnam war hero, Commanders of the famed Air Force Thunderbirds and Navy Blue Angels, the Commander/Pilot of “Marine One”, the presidential helicopter unit and the Mission Commander for the space shuttle Atlantis. These aviators – and their ties to South Central Kentucky – deserve to be recognized and celebrated so that future generations might be made aware of and motivated by their extraordinary achievements. This is the mission of Aviation Heritage Park.

The Classic Aircraft Aviation Museum supports the concept of ‘living history’ by exhibiting our restored aircraft at the Museum, at air shows, historical reunions, industry and aviation events – including aircraft static displays and flight demonstrations. Museum staff and volunteers provide lectures to schools, service clubs, and other organizations interested in aviation history and are proud to serve as an educational resource.

The mission of the Commemorative Air Force Utah Wing is to collect historic aircraft, restoring them to an airworthy status, and displaying them to the public to remember and honor the military aviation history of our armed forces is our goal.The Commemorative Air Force [CAF], was chartered in Texas as a 501c3 non-profit corporation in 1961 to preserve a representation of each aircraft flown during World War II. Originally known as the Confederate Air Force, in 2001 the name Commemorative Air Force was adopted to more accurately reflect the CAF mission. We tell the stories. . .we fly the airplanes. . .we keep the spirit of excitement and hope alive today.The CAF currently owns approximately 156 aircraft with over 9,000 members in 74 units throughout the U.S.The Utah Wing was formed in the mid-1980s with its first aircraft, a Boeing PT-17/N2S Stearman. Now the wing has a Beech C-45 Expeditor. Individual members of the Utah CAF also have some notable aircraft such as a Lockheed PV-2 Harpoon, Stinson L-5 Sentinel, Nanchang CJ-6, Piper L-4 Grasshopper, and an Aerocoupe 415/YPQ-13. Any of these aircraft are available for air shows, special events, or fly-bys.

The Yanks Air Museum is a non-profit 501 (c) (3) organization. Yanks’ mission is to acquire, restore and preserve one of the world’s largest and rarest collections of American aircraft, their history and artifacts. Today aviator or not, many visitors and group tours are lured to Yanks Air Museum, where the Legends live on! Yanks’ houses the largest private collection of American WWII fighter, dive and torpedo bombers in the world. Every aircraft at Yanks Air Museum has a story to tell. Join us to discover America’s aviation history and the lore of flight. From the Wright Brothers’ 1903 Wright Flyer to the record-breaking F-106 Delta Dart, at Yanks you can see the entire sweep of American aviation!In addition to the aircraft there are many fascinating exhibits at to see, like the vast collection of 720 aircraft models built by Burt Taylor. Or visit the new Spacesuit, flight suit and uniform pavilion which house an impressive assembly of aviation related attire including items from record-breaking aviatrix Jackie Cochran. Even our extensive collection of drones and missiles are quite unique and tell of the discovery of Marilyn Monroe. Spend the day and explore Yanks’ Fightertown Saitek Simulator Center. Enter the cockpit of a genuine military simulator and take a flight with us. Suit up for your flight briefing and prepare for your mission. Immerse yourself in a real flight training exercise. Experience what jet pilots feel as you “fly” the simulator on a mission!

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